Ranchi: Indian women's cricket skipper Anjum Chopra on Tuesday said the World Cup team would benefit if the captain batted at number three, giving Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag a chance to go at the bowling with their natural striking power.

"Though it is for the team management to decide the batting order, I feel Saurav can be pushed down the order as in the past two games he has not done well... Even in New Zealand he was not scoring coming up the order," Anjum, the country's only woman cricketer to have scored a Limited Overs International century, said.

"Sachin and Virender can open the innings and Saurav can come down at number three," added Anjum, who is leading Air India team in the East Zone senior women's Limited Overs tournament.

Stating that even the Indian team did not know what was wrong with its performance, the left- handed batswoman felt the World Cup squad was trying a little too hard to perform well.

"When you try hard, there may be the possibility of faltering and not coming up with the best result."

Asked whether Tendulkar is losing the appetite for runs, the all-rounder said "No, not at all. He did not play the full series in New Zealand due to injury problem. He is really a good bat."

Asked whether overdose of commercials has affected the team's concentration level, Anjum said, "The results are not coming out probably as the concentration level may have lost a little bit or probably the kind of pressure they have come about on their own selves may have increased... But it cannot be denied that they had also won some great matches."

Anjum, who led the women's Test team register its first ever overseas win in the South Africa Test series last year, also felt Rahul Dravid's wicket-keeping needed improvement.

"He did not try for a catch in one of the matches which he should have."

To a query whether she considered herself better than a couple of players in the current men's side, Anjum, who made her debut against New Zealand in 1995, replied, "I never really thought about it...Given a chance, why not?"

On potential World Cup champion, she said "Australia is a great side, so also Sri Lanka. You cannot deny New Zealand's great win against South Africa. And I never rule out Indians. So the tournament is wide open and it can be anybody's Cup."

Extras:
Sehwag to join Tendulkar at top, Ganguly to bat at four